Do you often find that your pockets constantly have rock treasures in them that your child finds throughout the day? Mine too. Do these rocks sometimes get a round in the washing machine? Yes, yes they do. Today I’m reviewing four fantastic children’s books for kids who love rocks, plus two excellent new releases.
New Releases
The Boldest White by Ibtihaj Muhammad, S. K. Ali, & Hatem Aly
This lovely picture book, co-written by Olympic medalist Ibtihaj Muhammad, is part of The Proudest Blue series, which celebrates Muslim American girls. Faizah loves her community at the mosque and at her fencing classes, but she doesn’t love being the center of attention. When she’s alone, she can easily imagine she’s the best fencer in the world, but she freezes up when people watch. Her family and community help her find her bravery.
Black Star by Kwame Alexander
This is the second book in the Door of No Return middle grade trilogy, set several years after the first book. Like the first, Alexander has written the novel in verse. It follows 12-year-old baseball fiend Charley Cuffey, Kofi’s granddaughter, who wants to be the first female pitcher to play professionally. But living in the segregated south right before the Great Migration presents numerous hurdles for Charley. When she challenges a bully to a baseball game, her actions have unforeseen consequences. This is a powerful, gorgeously written historical fiction.
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
Riot Recommendations
I Am a Rock by Ashley Qilavaq-Savard & Pelin Turgut
This is such a sweet picture book by an Inuk-Canadian author about a young boy, Pauloosie, who adores his pet rock, Miki Rock. Miki Rock is his beloved friend. One night, Pauloosie asks his mother, Anaana, about Miki Rock’s life, and to help him go to sleep, Anaana tells him a bedtime story about what Miki Rock has seen, heard, and felt over the years in the Arctic, where they live.
All the Rocks We Love by Lisa Varchol Perron, Taylor Perron, & David Scheirer
This is such a fun, rhyming nonfiction picture book about children’s universal love of rocks. Perron explores all the ways children play with rocks as well as the different types of rocks, all in lyrical, energetic text. The illustrations are bright and engaging, and the back matter includes more information about types of rocks, rock properties, and where they can be found. This book is a joy!
When You Find the Right Rock by Mary Lyn Ray & Felicita Sala
Ray’s lyrical story explores all the ways children love rocks. Big ones are for climbing, small ones are for pockets, and some are perfect for stacking. Really, rocks are special in so many different ways, even the ones that don’t seem like it at first. Ray connects a child’s love of rocks to bigger themes of self-love and feeling connected to the bigger world. Sala’s illustrations use bold pops of color in otherwise gray and brown backgrounds. It’s a joyful yet contemplative picture book.